4th Global Conference: Visions of Humanity in Cyberculture, Cyberspace and Science Fiction

Monday 6th July - Wednesday 8th July 2009
Mansfield College, Oxford

Call for Papers
This inter-disciplinary and multi-disciplinary
project aims to explore what it is to be human and
the nature of human community in cyberculture,
cyberspace and science fiction. In particular, the
project will explore the possibilities offered by
these contexts for creative thinking about persons
and the challenges posed to the nature and future
of national, international, and global communities.

Papers, short papers, and workshops are invited on
issues related to any of the following themes:

* the relationship between cyberculture,
cyberspace, science fiction
* cyberculture, cyberpunk and the near
future: utopias vs. dystopias
* science fiction and cyberpunk as a medium
for exploring the nature of persons
* humans and cyborgs; the synergy of humans
and technology; changing views of the body
* human and post-human concepts in cyber arts
and cinema
* bodies in cyberculture; from apes to
androids - electronic evolution; biotechnical
advances and the impact of life, death, and
social existence; the impact on individuality
* gender and cyberspace: new feminisms, new
masculinities
* electronic persons, community and identity;
cyberspace, cybercommunities, virtual worlds
* digital culture and interactive storytelling
* old messages, new medium: cyberspace and
mass communication
* nature, enhancing nature, and artificial
intelligence; artificial life, life and
information systems, networked living
* human and post-human politics; cyborg
citizenship and rights; influence of political
technologies
* cyberpolitics, cyberdemocracy, cyberterror;
old conflicts, new spaces: elections, protest and
war in cyberspace; nationality and nationalism in
cyberculture; the state and cyberspace: repression
vs. resistance
* cybercultures: the transnational and the local
* boundaries, frontiers and taboos in cyberculture
* religion and spirituality in cyberculture,
science fiction and cyberpunk
* technology vs. the natural? cyberculture
and the green movement

Papers will be considered on any related theme.
300 word abstracts should be submitted by Friday
6th February 2009. If your paper is accepted for
presentation at the conference, an 8 page draft
paper should be submitted by Friday 5th June 2009.

300 word abstracts should be submitted to both
Organising Chairs; abstracts may be in Word,
WordPerfect, or RTF formats, following this order:

author(s), affiliation, email address, title of
abstract, body of abstract

We acknowledge receipt and answer to all paper
proposals submitted. If you do not receive a reply
from us in a week you should assume we did
not receive your proposal; it might be lost in
cyberspace! We suggest, then, to look for an
alternative electronic route or resend.

Joint Organising Chairs
Dr Daniel Riha
Charles University
Prague,
Czech Republic
E-mail: daniel.riha@ff.cuni.cz

Dr Rob Fisher
Inter-Disciplinary.Net
Priory House, Wroslyn Road
Freeland, Oxfordshire OX29 8HR
E-mail: visions4@inter-disciplinary.net

The conference is part of the 'At the Interface'
series of research projects run by ID.Net. It aims
to bring together people from different
areas and interests to share ideas and explore
various discussions which are innovative and
challenging. All papers accepted for and presented
at the conference will be published in an ISBN
eBook. Selected papers may be invited to go
forward for development into 20-25 page chapters
for publication in a themed dialogic ISBN hard
copy volume.

For further details about the project please visit:
http://www.inter-disciplinary.net/ati/Visions/vhccsf.htm

For further details about the conference please visit:
http://www.inter-disciplinary.net/ati/Visions/v4/cfp.html